أشاد حسام غالي، نجم الأهلي الأسبق ومحلل قناة “إم بي سي مصر”، بـ لاعبي الأهلي وذلك تعقيباً على أحداث الشوط الأول خلال مواجهة إنتر ميامي في منافسات كأس العالم للأندية 2025.

ويلتقي الأهلي مع إنتر ميامي، على ملعب “هارد روك”، في إطار مباريات الجولة الأولى للمجموعة الأولى من بطولة كأس العالم للأندية 2025.

ويتواجد الأهلي في المجموعة الأولى ضمن منافسات كأس العالم للأندية، رفقة أندية إنتر ميامي الأمريكي وبورتو البرتغالي وبالميراس البرازيلي.

اقرأ ايضاً.. فيديو | إلغاء هدف الأهلي الأول أمام إنتر ميامي في كأس العالم للأندية

وقال حسام غالي في تصريحات عبر قناة “إم بي سي مصر”: “شوط تاريخي للأهلي في افتتاحية المونديال امام انتر ميامي بنجومه، ليس لهم تواجد ولا توجد أي خطورة من الأجناب”.

وأضاف غالي: ” الأهلي أهدر عدة فرص غير طبيعية، لا يجب في مثل هذه المباريات إهدار كل هذه الفرص، أخشى أن نعاقب على إهدار كل هذه الفرص”.

وأتم: “أهم شيء ألا يعتقد اللاعبين أننا أهدرنا فرص كثيرة فسوف نُعاقب، هم قدموا مباراة جيدة جدًا وأتمنى تكتمل على خير”.

يذكر أن الشوط الأول انتهى سلبياً بين الفريقين، وشهد إهدار عدة فرص من جانب النادي الأهلي، بالإضافة إلى إهدار ركلة جزاء عن طريق محمود حسن تريزيجيه.

Spinner takes six wickets to help West Indies inflict an innings defeat on Zimbabwe

Abhimanyu Bose14-Feb-2023

Gudakesh Motie spun West Indies to a 1-0 series win as they wrapped up the second Test against Zimbabwe by an innings and four runs.Motie, playing his third Test, returned figures of 7 for 37 and 6 for 62 as West Indies won the match convincingly inside three days, despite rain wiping out large durations on the second and third days. His figures of 13 for 99 are also the best in a Test match by a West Indies spinner, as he went past Sonny Ramadhin’s 11 for 152 against England in 1950.Despite good performances by Victor Nyauchi, Innocent Kaia and captain Craig Ervine, Zimbabwe succumbed to a big defeat, with their batting line-up faltering in the absence of Gary Ballance, who missed the game due to a migraine headache.Related

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Play started late on day three due to a wet outfield and once it did, Nyauchi made an instant impact, getting Jason Holder to nick off with the first delivery of the day.Motie, the other overnight batter, soon became Nyauchi’s fifth victim as he found deep midwicket with a pull as West Indies added just two runs to their total, taking a 177-run lead. It was Nyauchi’s first five-wicket haul in Tests.For the second time in the match, Kaia was off the blocks quickly, hitting three fine strokes for boundaries in the first two overs. But Alzarri Joseph gave West Indies the first breakthrough in the third over as Tanunurwa Makoni edged behind, looking to play an expansive drive.Then, the first bowling change brought a wicket, with Chamu Chibhabha chopping on off Holder’s bowling in the seventh over.Kaia, Zimbabwe’s best batter in the first innings, continued to chip away at West Indies’ lead, even hitting Holder for three consecutive boundaries.Ervine held down one end as Kaia scored 30 of the 41 runs that they made for the third wicket.When Motie came out to bowl, Kaia immediately started attacking him with the sweep, but looked less in control than he was against the pacers. Kaia and Ervine saw Zimbabwe reach lunch at 46 for 2. In the third over after lunch, Kaia finally fell to the sweep, as he got a thin top edge that Joshua Da Silva held on to after a small juggling act.Innocent Kaia got off to strong starts but failed to convert them•AP

He fell seven runs short of a half-century, after being dismissed for 38 in the first innings.Ervine then shed his defensive approach to keep the scoreboard ticking, even as Motie castled Milton Shumba and Tafadzwa Tsiga in quick succession to complete his first Test 10-wicket haul.Gabriel further dented Zimbabwe’s ambitions when he got one to sneak under Donald Tiripano’s bat to uproot the off-stump.Ervine then brought up his half-century off 73 deliveries with a reverse-sweep off Motie.Motie soon struck again as Wellington Masakadza gifted a simple catch to forward short leg as he came out of the crease to defend.West Indies would have hoped to wrap things up quickly, but Ervine and Brandon Mavuta held firm to see Zimbabwe reach 158 for 7 at tea, with the deficit whittled down to 19 runs.Zimbabwe then took seven off the first over after tea, bowled by Joseph, to bring the deficit down to 11 runs. But Chase had Mavuta caught at forward short leg with the first ball of the next over to give West Indies another opening.Motie came back into the attack immediately and was quick to wrap the game up.He trapped Ervine lbw for 72 – Zimbabwe’s highest score in the match – as he played back to a length ball that spun in and stayed low before getting the ball to spin past an advancing Nyauchi for Da Silva to complete a simple stumping.

Journalist Ben Jacobs expects Leeds United to make a summer move for a “fantastic” striker, who would be “keen” on a move to Elland Road.

Leeds take huge step towards promotion

Leeds’ promotion hopes were significantly boosted with a 3-1 victory against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane last night, with Junior Firpo, Ao Tanaka and Joel Piroe striking late to complete a second-half turnaround against their Yorkshire rivals.

The Whites now sit seven points clear of third-place Burnley as we enter the business end of the season, having hit a rich vein of form at the right time, winning their last five games on the spin in the Championship.

There is still a long way to go, but Daniel Farke’s side are in a strong position to return to the Premier League at the second time of asking, and they have now started to identify potential targets for the summer transfer window.

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Manor Solomon has played a key role in Leeds’ promotion push, and it has recently been revealed the Tottenham Hotspur man is set to be available for a fee of around £10m – £15m at the end of the season.

Solomon is not the only attacking target the Championship promotion-hopefuls have in mind, however, with Jacobs recently telling GiveMeSport he expects them to make a fresh move for Southampton’s Cameron Archer, who they wanted in January.

“My expectation is, with Southampton likely to go down and Leeds on track to come up, that Leeds will revisit the Cameron Archer deal, and over the course of a long summer, potentially make more progress there.

“Archer is keen on the move. Leeds value the fact that he can play centrally or out wide. And Archer will remain on Leeds’ shortlist heading into the summer.”

Archer was Leeds' top striker target in January

Jacobs also revealed Archer was Leeds’ “number one target” at striker last month, having displayed a keen eye for goal in the Championship in the past, bagging 11 goals and six assists in 20 games for Middlesbrough in the 2022-23 campaign.

The former Boro man has also received praise from ex-Solihull Moors coach James Quinn, who said: “He came in and straightaway I was taken aback by his technical quality. A fantastic finisher with both feet. One of the best I’ve seen.”

That said, the 23-year-old has struggled since making the step-up to the Premier League this season, joining Southampton last summer in a £15m deal.

Since arriving at St. Mary’s, the striker has scored just two Premier League goals in 23 outings, failing to find the back of the net since October.

Of course, it is a tough ask to regularly score goals while playing in such a poor side, but there should be some concern about Archer’s Premier League goal record, given that Leeds will most likely be returning to the top tier next season.

Taylor Twellman is “not buying” Lionel Messi’s excuses at Inter Miami, with the Argentine superstar pointing fingers at MLS match officials.

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• Out of sorts Herons have been struggling for form
• Talismanic captain has lost his cool at times
• Calls for MLS to improve standard of officiating

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  After enjoying an unbeaten start to their 2025 campaign, the Herons have suffered five defeats in their last seven games across all competitions. They endured CONCACAF Champions Cup heartache at the semi-final stage, while dropping precious points domestically.

  Watch every game of the FIFA Club World Cup live on DAZNStream now

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  Messi has been cutting a frustrated figure, with the eight-time Ballon d’Or winner taking to engaging in heated confrontations with rival coaches and referees once final whistles have been blown.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  He was fuming again at the end of a 3-0 derby defeat to Florida neighbours Orlando City, with Messi claiming that some MLS referees “don’t know the rules” as a passionate call for change was made.

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  WHAT TAYLOR TWELLMAN SAID

  Twellman believes that Messi and Co need to start looking at their own performances before trying to pass blame elsewhere, with the former USMNT star saying: “They did NOT lose 3-0 because of the officiating….yes improvement is needed sure but I watched the 90’. Not buying the refs were/are the issue with giving up 20 goals in 6 games.”

تتواصل منافسات بطولة كأس العالم للأندية، نسخة 2025، المُقامة حاليًا بنظامها الجديد في الولايات المتحدة الأمريكية، والتي تستمر حتى يوم 13 يوليو المقبل.

واُفتتحت البطولة فجر يوم الأحد 14 يونيو الجاري، بمباراة بين فريقي الأهلي المصري وإنتر ميامي الأمريكي على ملعب “هارد روك” حيث تعادلا سلبيًا بدون أهداف.

ويشارك 32 فريقًا في النسخة الحالية من كأس العالم للأندية، والتي تُعد التطبيق الأول للنظام الجديد والذي أقره الاتحاد الدولي لكرة القدم، فيفا.

ويتأهل متصدر ووصيف كل مجموعة من المجموعات الثمانية إلى دور الـ16.

اقرأ أيضًا.. الفرق المتأهلة لدور الـ16 من كأس العالم للأندية.

ووضع فيفا ملامح دور الـ16، منذ عدة أشهر، حيث يلتقي متصدر المجموعة الأولى مع وصيف المجموعة الثانية، في حين أن وصيف المجموعة الأولى سيواجه متصدر الثانية، وبالمثل، في باقي المجموعات حيث يلاقي المتصدر للمجموعة ثاني المجموعة المقابلة.

وتنطلق منافسات دور الـ16 من كأس العالم للأندية يوم السبت 28 يونيو الجاري، وتستمر حتى الأربعاء 2 يوليو القادم. مجموعات كأس العالم للأندية 2025

المجموعة الأولى:

بالميراس، 5 نقاط (تأهل).

إنتر ميامي، 5 نقاط (تأهل).

بورتو، نقطتين (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

الأهلي نقطتين (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة الثانية:

باريس سان جيرمان، 6 نقاط (تأهل).

بوتافوجو، 6 نقاط (تأهل).

أتلتيكو مدريد، 6 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

سياتل ساوندرز، بلا نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة الثالثة:

بنفيكا، 7 نقاط (تأهل).

بايرن ميونخ، 6 نقاط (تأهل).

بوكا جونيورز، نقطتين (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

أوكلاند سيتي، نقطة (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة الرابعة:

فلامينجو، 7 نقاط (تأهل).

تشيلسي، 6 نقاط (تأهل).

الترجي، 3 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

لوس أنجلوس، نقطة (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة الخامسة:

إنتر ميلان، 7 نقاط (تأهل).

مونتيري، 5 نقاط (تأهل).

ريفر بليت، 4 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا)

أوراوا، بلا نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة السادسة: 

بوروسيا دورتموند، 7 نقاط (تأهل)

فلومينينسي، 5 نقاط (تأهل)

صن داونز، 4 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

أولسان، بلا نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة السابعة:

مانشستر سيتي، 9 نقاط (تأهل).

يوفنتوس، 6 نقاط (تأهل).

العين، 3 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

الوداد، بلا نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

المجموعة الثامنة:

ريال مدريد، 7 نقاط (تأهل).

الهلال، 5 نقاط (تأهل).

سالزبورج، 4 نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا).

باتشوكا، بلا نقاط (ودع البطولة رسميًا). مواجهات دور الـ16 من كأس العالم للأندية

متصدر المجموعة الأولى (بالميراس) ضد وصيف المجموعة الثانية (بوتافوجو).

متصدر المجموعة الثانية (باريس سان جيرمان) ضد وصيف المجموعة الأولى (إنتر ميامي).

متصدر المجموعة الثالثة (بنفيكا) ضد وصيف المجموعة الرابعة (تشيلسي).

متصدر المجموعة الرابعة (فلامينجو) ضد وصيف المجموعة الثالثة (بايرن ميونخ).

متصدر المجموعة الخامسة (إنتر ميلان) ضد وصيف المجموعة السادسة (فلومينينسي).

متصدر المجموعة السادسة (بوروسيا دورتموند) ضد وصيف المجموعة الخامسة (مونتيري).

متصدر المجموعة السابعة (مانشستر سيتي) ضد وصيف المجموعة الثامنة (الهلال).

متصدر المجموعة الثامنة (ريال مدريد) ضد وصيف المجموعة السابعة (يوفنتوس).

For a time it looked as if nothing was going to derail the Cole Palmer train at Chelsea, with the £40m sensation repeatedly putting in statement performance after statement performance for the west London side.

From netting four in one half against Brighton and Hove Albion, to scoring a delightful panenka penalty against Tottenham Hotspur, the England international had been in red-hot form in the early months of 2024/25, following on from chalking up 33 goals and assists in just 33 Premier League games last season.

As to be expected for a player still just 22, that meteoric rise has faltered somewhat of late, with the former Manchester City man having failed to score since the 2-2 draw with Bournemouth back in mid-January.

Those recent woes were encapsulated by a rare penalty miss against relegation strugglers, Leicester City, last weekend, with the Blues talisman in need of his teammates to step up, after carrying the goalscoring burden for so long.

Even when factoring in this slight slump in 2025, the decision to fork out for Palmer back in the summer of 2023 has been an unequivocal success.

How Palmer compares to Chelsea's Premier League greats

There was a time in which rivals Spurs were somewhat mocked by Pep Guardiola as the “Harry Kane team”, with Chelsea perhaps in danger of morphing into the “Cole Palmer team”, considering just how crucial he has become to the club’s recent fortunes.

Indeed, the Blues have lost three of the six games in which Palmer has failed to score in since the draw with the Cherries, having also only narrowly overcome Ruud van Nistelrooy’s Foxes last weekend.

It surely won’t be long, however, before the club’s number 20 comes good again, having already scored and assisted 60 goals in just 78 games for the west Londoners across all competitions.

Player

Goals

Frank Lampard

147

Didier Drogba

104

Eden Hazard

85

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink

69

Gianfranco Zola

59

Eidur Gudjohnsen

54

Diego Costa

52

John Terry

41

Nicolas Anelka

38

Willian

37

As for his form in the Premier League, the fleet-footed star is also only just outside the top ten for Chelsea’s leading scorers in the competition to date, having scored 36 times already despite not even finishing his second season at the club.

It surely won’t be long before Palmer pushes himself ahead of the likes of Willian and Nicolas Anelka, once his drought is ended, while he may even have his sights set on reaching the levels of the likes of Eden Hazard, Didier Drogba and the great Frank Lampard, should he see out his current contract.

Tied down until 2033, the Englishman has ample time to cement himself as a true Chelsea great, with Todd Boehly and co having already reaped the rewards for their brave investment.

On a less obvious note, the ownership regime may have repeated that astute business with another key signing from last summer.

Chelsea's best signing since Palmer

It’s fair to say that the addition of Palmer – which came late in the day back in August 2023 – has been followed up by a mixed bag of signings since then, with last summer now looking like a real mess if recent form is anything to go by.

Market Movers

Indeed, Jadon Sancho – who is set to sign permanently this summer – has scored just twice this season, while £46.3m man Joao Felix has already been shipped out on loan to AC Milan.

Renato Veiga has also moved to Italy to join Juventus on loan, while ex-Barcelona teenager, Marc Guiu, has failed to score a Premier League goal and is now sidelined with injury.

Pedro Neto has shown flickers of late, although the Portuguese speedster has still only chalked up three league goals, while Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has been branded “one of the most pointless signings of 2024” by writer Zach Lowy, amid his limited league action.

It could be argued that Boehly’s best signing since landing Palmer has actually been the free transfer capture of Tosin Adarabioyo, with the towering centre-back joining from Fulham following the expiry of his contract.

The oldest outfield player to line up for Chelsea this season, at the age of just 27, the former England youth international mirrors Palmer in having previously risen up through the ranks at Man City, before spending time on loan at West Bromwich Albion and Blackburn Rovers, prior to his move to Craven Cottage in 2020.

Lauded as a “special player” by Fulham boss Marco Silva, the experienced centre-back has cemented a regular role for himself alongside Levi Colwill in the absence of Wesley Fofana, having made 15 league appearances this season so far.

Already described as one of the “leaders” in the dressing room by manager Enzo Maresca, the 6 foot 5 titan looks like a real bargain for the Blues, not least considering his market value now stands at €20m (£17m), as per Transfermarkt.

As journalist Lloyd Canfield has only recently stated, the signing of Tosin looks to be an “excellent bit of business”, having shown the value in seeking out a bargain in the market, rather than always being forced into paying top dollar.

Tosin, it must be said, is the not most eye-catching, nor glamourous of talents to have walked in the door in recent times, but – with four goals under his belt already – the Englishman can be pleased with his early impact at Stamford Bridge.

93% passing, 90% duels won: Chelsea star is more irreplaceable than Palmer

Chelsea’s 7/10 star is proving why he is even more important to Maresca’s side than Palmer

ByConnor Holden Mar 14, 2025

Arsenal ignored past advice to appoint Luis Enrique as manager, who has now won the second Champions League title of his career.

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• Luis Enrique suggested to Arsenal in 2018
• Other Premier League clubs have passed
• Open to working in England at some point

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  According to Guillem Balague, it was suggested to Arsenal by Unai Emery when the Gunners were seeking a replacement for Arsene Wenger in 2018, that they should consider Luis Enrique. They didn't pursue it and ended up appointing Emery, who lasted just over a year before being sacked in December 2019, but Luis Enrique has "always entertained the idea" of coaching in English football.

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  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Luis Enrique was out of work at the time, having taken a year off since leaving Barcelona at the end of the 2016-17 season. Balague adds that since 2008, when Luis Enrique succeeded Pep Guardiola as Barcelona B coach, Manchester United, Chelsea and Tottenham Hotspur have all considered hiring him and not gone ahead with it. In turn, Luis Enrique has rejected the likes of Aston Villa, Swansea and Leeds over the years. Shortly after Arsenal appointed Emery, Luis Enrique landed the Spain gig, which he held on and off for four years as he and his family went through hell and back off the pitch.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Having guided PSG to Champions League glory for the first time in ther history, Luis Enrique joins a select group of coaches to have won the European Cup or Champions League with two different clubs. His first came with Barcelona in 2014-15, while the others on the list are Carlo Ancelotti, (AC Milan, Real Madrid), Pep Guardiola (Barcelona, Man City), Ernst Happel (Feyenoord, Hamburg), Ottmar Hitzfeld (Borussia Dortmund, Bayern Munich), Jose Mourinho (Porto, Inter) and Jupp Heynckes (Real Madrid, Bayern Munich).

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  WHAT NEXT?

  On the immediate horizon for Luis Enrique is whether he can PSG the new world champions at the imminent FIFA Club World Cup. As European champions, they are automatically among the favourites. In the longer term, his contract in the French capital, extended as recently as February, runs for two more years until the end of the 2026-27 season. And if he still has an idea to manage in England, that could be an opportunity to do it – Pep Guardiola's contract is due to expire at the same time, so Manchester City could well be in the market for a new boss.

Chelsea’s search for an away win in the Premier League continued as Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal got the better of Enzo Maresca’s dejected visitors 1-0 on Sunday afternoon.

The Blues have now lost their last four top-flight outings on the spin, with their last away win coming all the way back in December of last year when a Cole Palmer double helped Maresca’s men to a barnstorming 4-3 victory at Tottenham Hotspur.

No such joy was on the menu this time around in North London with Palmer also nowhere to be seen owing to injury, leaving Chelsea hanging onto a top-four position.

Robert Sanchez had a dire afternoon against the Gunners, with the shaky Blues goalkeeper nearly gifting Arsenal some goals away from fishing out Mikel Merino’s crucial winner.

Sanchez's shaky performance vs Arsenal

The ex-Brighton and Hove Albion ‘keeper is often put under the microscope due to his haphazard performances in between the sticks, resulting in a poor return of five clean sheets from 23 league encounters.

Before Arsenal got into their groove courtesy of Merino’s header, Sanchez would horrendously skew a pass straight to Gabriel Martinelli, with his blushes then spared when the Brazilian squandered the subsequent opportunity.

Yet, although no glaring errors would cost his team a goal at the Emirates, the Spanish ‘keeper has been prone to a dicey moment or two all campaign long, with Sanchez guilty of eight errors this season that have then resulted in an opposition shot being fired.

It could well be time for Maresca to hand Filip Jørgensen the first-team gloves on a permanent basis moving forward, but Sanchez isn’t the only dud at the Spaniard’s disposal in danger of losing his starting spot…

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1 ByBarney Lane Jan 27, 2025 Not just Sanchez: 3/10 star's Chelsea career must be over

It’s fair to say there was a lot of money on show from Chelsea’s perspective at the Emirates, with Pedro Neto costing £54m to get in through the door, alongside a £106m-rated Enzo Fernandez occupying the middle of the park.

But, it was £52m man Christopher Nkunku who received a lot of pelters at the full-time whistle for his abject performance, with Chelsea’s attack lacking a real bite across the flat 1-0 defeat. So bad was his display that one Blues content creator suggested that the Frenchman’s “body language was a disgrace”.

Minutes played

76

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Touches

39

Accurate passes

21/24 (88%)

Possession lost

8x

Shots

1

On-target shots

0

Successful dribbles

0

Total duels won

4/10

The former RB Leipzig man – unlike some of the aforementioned Arsenal faces in Merino and Martinelli – struggled to strike fear into the opposition defenders when venturing forward, with no successful dribbles pulled off, no shots on target being registered to try and catch David Raya out.

Moreover, Nkunku’s low 39 touches overall means ropey shot-stopper Sanchez actually betters his number of touches by two at 41, as the Frenchman’s bumpy time donning Chelsea blue continues on.

Handed a wretched 3/10 match rating by Daily Express journalist Tom Parsons at the full-time whistle – who lamented the number 18’s failure to stretch the Gunners – his time at Stamford Bridge must soon come to a crashing halt over the summer.

After all, it had been reported that Chelsea had put Nkunku up for sale around the £65m mark back in January, and after this no-show display on the road, Maresca must avoid starting him again.

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KKR’s season has nosedived after two thrilling wins, while CSK have found ways to win despite not having some of their first-choice players

Ashish Pant22-Apr-2023

Big picture: Can KKR turn their season around?After starting their season with two wins in three games, Kolkata Knight Riders’ IPL 2023 has nosedived as they return home on the back of three losses on the bounce. It doesn’t help then, that they next face Chennai Super Kings, who have had the wood over them in the past – they have won 17 of the 26 meetings between them and have the edge – five to four – in games held at Eden Gardens, too.KKR have an unsettled air about them this season, starting with their batting up top. They have fielded four different opening combinations in the six matches. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, who opened in the first five games, was dropped for the last outing, against Delhi Capitals, with Jason Roy and Litton Das coming in – both playing their first game of the season. That did not work too well. Nitish Rana and Andre Russell have struggled for consistency, while Rinku Singh hasn’t done much apart from innings against Gujarat Titans. Venkatesh Iyer has stood out with a 104, an 83 and a 34, but also has three low scores.The other pain point for KKR is their pace bowling, which has failed to fire. Their fast bowlers have collectively managed just nine wickets in six games, going at an economy rate of 11.3. It hasn’t helped that Umesh Yadav, the senior man in the pack, has picked just one wicket in six outings.CSK have fewer concerns, though a turnaround of 48 hours could be one of them. Having played Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday evening, they travel to Kolkata, and with the mercury rising there, it might not be easy.On the field, CSK seem to have most of their bases covered. Their openers, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway, have hit their straps from the get-go in the powerplay, while Ajinkya Rahane has been a revelation. CSK have scored runs at a rate of 9.9 in the first six overs so far in the tournament – the best for any team. While injuries to many of their quicks is a concern, Matheesha Pathirana and Tushar Deshpande stepping up has given them some relief.7:42

Make it Big – Rinku Singh

Form guideKolkata Knight Riders LLLWW
Chennai Super Kings WWLWWTeam news: Stokes still on the sidelinesStephen Fleming has confirmed that Ben Stokes will continue to be on the bench for the next few days, but said his injury was “not major”. Stokes played the first two games of the season and has been on the sidelines since. “Stokes had another setback, so he is probably a few days or a week away at least,” Fleming said after their previous game. Sisanda Magala has been warming up with the team, but he too is unlikely to feature in the next game. Ditto for Deepak Chahar.Impact Player strategyKolkata Knight Riders: Shardul Thakur was benched for the last game – due to a niggle, it appears – and he could come into the playing XI, replacing Kulwant Khejroliya or Umesh. Suyash Sharma and Venkatesh are likely to be Impact Players.Probable XII: 1 Jason Roy, 2 Litton Das (wk), 3 , 4 Nitish Rana (capt), 5 Mandeep Singh, 6 Andre Russell, 7 Rinku Singh, 8 Sunil Narine, 9 Shardul Thakur, 10 Umesh Yadav, 11 Varun Chakravarthy, 12 Chennai Super Kings: They named an unchanged XI for their previous outing against Sunrisers and are unlikely to make any changes for this game. Ambati Rayudu, who has been used as an Impact Player all through the tournament, should once again swap places with Akash Singh.Probable XII: 1 Devon Conway, 2 Ruturaj Gaikwad, 3 Ajinkya Rahane, 4 Moeen Ali, 5 Shivam Dube 6 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 MS Dhoni (capt, wk), 9 Matheesha Pathirana, 10 Tushar Deshpande, 11 Maheesh Theekshana, 12 2:07

Manjrekar: Conway adjusts his approach according to the team’s needs

Stats that matter Sunil Narine has picked up 58 wickets at Eden Gardens, the joint second-most for a bowler at a single venue in the IPL. Varun Chakravarthy has dismissed MS Dhoni three times in four innings. Dhoni averages 3.66 against him. Rahane has fallen to Narine four times in ten innings and averages 17.75 against him.Since IPL 2018, the captain winning the toss has opted to bowl first in each of the 20 games at Eden Gardens. Pitch and conditionsScores of 200 have been hit in three of the four innings so far at Eden Gardens this season. Incidentally, the team batting first won both the games. The surface has played well for batters, but with the April sun baking down, there could be some help for the spinners. There are chances of a light shower on Sunday, which might bring down the temperature a touch.Quotes”This IPL, if you notice, every team is coming hard at us in the powerplay because our spin has been doing exceptionally well. So, all the reason for them to target us in the powerplay because of the field restrictions.”
“The travel is more exhausting than what people think. We are about to embark on a busy couple of weeks, so we are well aware of the challenges. It’s a massive challenge.”
The Big question

Orla Prendergast anchored Western Storm to a crucial seven-wicket win over Central Sparks at Bristol’s Seat Unique Stadium to keep alive their hopes of progressing in the Charlotte Edwards Cup.Top-scoring with 46 from 43 deliveries, the Ireland international staged a meaningful stand of 57 in 7.5 overs for the third wicket with Fran Wilson, who made 34, and then saw the job through in an unbroken partnership of 45 with skipper Sophie Luff, who contributed 20 not out off 21 as Storm chased down their target with four balls to spare.Sparks won the toss, elected to bat and were buoyed by a superb innings of 66 from 45 balls by overseas signing Erin Burns, who dominated stands of 36 and 66 with Davina Perrin and Abbey Freeborn for the third and fourth wickets respectively.In outstanding form, England hopeful Dani Gibson did her best to keep the visitors in check, proving both incisive with the new ball and wily at the death to return figures of 4 for 23 from four overs and deny the visitors the opportunity to post a truly imposing total.With three wins from their six games so far, Storm still have an outside chance of making Finals Day as they prepare for Wednesday’s key fixture against group leaders Blaze at Cardiff. But Sparks are now effectively out of the running after four defeats in six outings.Without England batter Amy Jones and potentially short of top-order runs, Sparks were heavily dependent upon overseas star Burns after openers Eve Jones and Ami Campbell perished inside four overs with 16 on the board. Storm’s most effective bowler this summer, Gibson accounted for both, having Jones held at mid-off in the act of driving and then dislodging Campbell’s off stump with a ball that nipped back.Demonstrating superb timing and clean hitting from the outset, Burns immediately set about redressing the balance, driving Sophia Smale through the covers to collect her first four and help Sparks reach 30 for 2 at the end of the six-over powerplay. Teenager Perrin played her part at the other end, displaying confidence beyond her years in carrying the fight to the bowlers.Prepared to live dangerously, the 16-year-old was dropped on 10 off the bowling of Prendergast, Smale the offender at mid-off. But she made good her escape to register 22 from 23 balls in a valuable stand of 36 in 31 balls with Burns for the third wicket before chipping Alex Griffiths to mid-off in the ninth.Having reached a modest 57 for 3 at the end of 10 overs, Sparks still had a good deal to do in order to post a challenging total. Now partnered by Freeborn, who adopted a supporting role, Burns took it upon herself to redress the balance, moving up through the gears and dominating a key fourth-wicket stand of 66 in 8.5 overs.Targeting Chloe Skelton’s offspin, the Australian stepped down the crease to plunder three boundaries in a twelfth over that yielded 14 runs, in the process surpassing her previous highest T20 score of the season, 41 not out made against Thunder at Worcester last month. She offered just one chance, dropped on 49 by Griffiths at midwicket off the bowling of Gibson in the 17th over, scampering two runs to bring up her 50 from 36 balls and raise a half century stand with Freeborn.Having served as the perfect foil in an innings of 21 from 22 balls, Freeborn was caught at backward point by Luff, snared by slow left armer Smale. Looking to accelerate in the final over, Burns was bowled by Gibson, who then demonstrated her expertise at the death by removing Katie George two balls later.Gibson proved forthright at the top of the order, striking a quartet of fours in an innings of 18 that occupied just 14 deliveries as Storm made a quick start to their chase. Although she was held at extra cover off the bowling of former team-mate George and fellow opener Nat Wraith hit Burns to midwicket and departed for 6, the home side still managed to raise 50 for 2 from the six-over powerplay, at which point they were required to score at just over a run a ball.Confronted by a triumvirate of spinners in the form of Burns, Hannah Baker and Georgia Baker, Wilson and Prendergast eschewed unnecessary risk, proved adept at finding the gaps, ran hard between the wickets and punished the bad ball when it came along to consolidate Storm’s good start. Former England batter Wilson scored freely either side of the wicket as the home side advanced their score to 77 for 2 at the halfway stage of the innings.Having already contributed half-centuries in successful run chases against Thunder and Sunrisers this season, Wilson again used her considerable experience to render a potentially tricky situation relatively straightforward, the 31-year-old raising 34 from 28 balls, with five fours, when she was lured forward by Baker and stumped in the 13th over with the score on 92.Storm required a further 44 from 45 balls when Prendergast was joined by Luff, and the fourth-wicket pair always had something in hand as they closed in on their target without any undue alarms. Both scored at a run-a-ball, Luff accruing two boundaries in a breezy innings, and Prendergast hitting the winning runs with her fifth four.